ED can't arrest accused after special court has taken cognisance of complaint: SC

Once a special court takes cognisance of the complain of money laundering, investigative agency Enforcement Directorate (ED) cannot arrest the accused under Section 19 of the money laundering legislation, the Supreme Court said on Thursday.

The panel comprising Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan said that if an accused attends court following a summons, the agency must seek permission from the relevant court to obtain custody of the individual when being probed under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.

"If the accused appears before the special court by summons (issued by court), it cannot be treated that he is in custody," SC said in its judgment.

"Accused who appeared before the court pursuant to the summons not required to apply for bail, and thus twin conditions of Section 45 of PMLA not applicable," the added.

The twin conditions state that when an accused in a money laundering case applies for bail, the court has to first allow the public prosecutor to be heard and only when it is satisfied that the accused is not guilty and unlikely to commit a similar offence when released, can bail be granted.

The apex court judgment was pronounced on a question of whether an accused in a money laundering case has to meet the stringent twin test for bail even in cases where the special court takes cognisance of the offence.